We are supposed to be in the midst of an economic crisis, but the clients of the terraces in the height of Madrid are already immersed in the happy twenties. A couple of years ago, before the pandemic, this newspaper made a Gin-Tdic route for business with a view to the Gran Vía and now, after the debacle, it has proven that prices have risen 5% and that they have opened new bars. There is hardly any international tourism these days in the capital of Spain, but the local public compensates. There is really eager to have fun and let's know on Instagram. The one of the heights is a world of evasion, a bubble away from the problems at ground level. More information in the Gin-Tonic plan with views is 12.5 euros if you opt for the cheapest of the letter, such as Beefeater, Tanqueray or Larios. The premium client pays average 17.3 euros for brands like Monkey 47 or Hendrick's. Two years ago the average Cup expense was 11.9 euros and 16.3, respectively. For a current pocket, it is expensive to be happy in one of these exclusive places. The number of high bars on the Axis of the Gran Vía has increased in these two years. In this new route, five more businesses have been added with a view to this street, which takes the figure of 18 to 23. Only in the last month three new terraces have been added: CR7 Pestana (the Hotel de Cristiano Ronaldo), Le Tavernier (Meliá Group) and Room Mate Macarena (from Kike Sarasla). The star incorporation from the route in 2019 has been the terrace of the Hotel Riu Riu Plaza All, on a 27th floor (and a VIP box that makes plant 28). It is double height that the next higher terrace in the area. Here many come to discover an unprecedented view of the center of the capital and succeed in social networks. «We are the most instagrameable place in Madrid,» presumes Gonzalo Baselga, general sales director of the Riu Group. There are also people who come for the music of DJ Nano, who clicks once a week at sunset. Others go on the glass catwalk, not suitable for people with vertigo. If you look down, they are 117 meters of fall. The romantics choose this place for marriage requests. They are photos of «Yes, I want» that say more «like» .instagram is the best free advertising for Riu, but TV is still influential. “We saw the roof in the last season of the elite series and decided to come. It is a bit expensive, but to know it is worth it, ”says María Ángeles García, 29 years old. The terrace of the Riu is the most expensive experience of all (the Gin-Tonic with views comes out for 21 euros or 26, according to the brand of the gin), but the customers pay it satisfied. Every afternoon a tail is formed at the hotel door, in the Plaza de España. A 1,500 people go up, according to Riu.A client of the Hotel Riu Plaza de España posing this Monday at the top of the Crystal Wroker of the Terrace. Inma Flores (BitcoinDynamic)
Imported fashion
The success of the terraces contrasts with the troubles of the shops at the foot of this 1.4 -kilometer street. Many stores remain closed since the beginning of the Coronavirus pandemic, but everything is open. In fact, many other entrepreneurs would like to have a bar on their Gran Vía terrace, but urban norms in some cases prevent their opening, according to Baselga, of Riu. The hotel chain invested almost 400 million euros for taking this building that had been closed for years and had become an emblem of the 2008 real estate crisis. The terrace in height was key to make the decision to buy the building, in 2017. For then the bum of the terraces in height in Madrid was already noticed, although this is a very recent fashion. The first of the Gran Vía was in 2011 that of the Circle of Fine Arts, according to the company that manages it, the Azotea Group. In the sector they realized that Madrid had in their heights some wasted assets. In colder or rainy cities such as New York, London or Paris had been exploding these roofs for some time during the summer months. Until then, the Gran Vía terraces had been places to enjoy hidden, one of the best kept secrets in Madrid. When cultural acts ended in the Circle of Fine Arts, many went up to the terrace to the slicing and set up illegal parties, according to the commercial director of Azotea, Mercedes Casanova: “If you talk to people with more than 50 years they tell you that they sneaked here with some birras and caught a fart.” Other attractiveness of these terraces is the opportunity to cross with celebrities. Actor Mario Casas or Dulceida influencer can sometimes be seen taking cocktails in Picalagartos. Former President Mariano Rajoy likes the classic atmosphere of the principal, where other PP politicians are usually going, and the singer Alaska El Beach Club with Balinese beds and Moët Champagne of the Emperor Hotel. His photos in networks are a promotion that is priceless. «We do not pay for advertising, it becomes alone,» says Baselga. The most affordable terraces (of 10 or 12 euros) attract a youth audience. In Alooft they have a typical recreational machine of the eighties bars with video games such as the Street Fighter. Although the average prices has risen, some terraces have a slightly more economical letter than in 2019. They are still leaving the hole, such as the emperor, which has been closed 15 months until it reopened two weeks ago. It is the first time that this hotel closes since its inauguration in 1948. Half of the template is still in Erte.
Lucas, a French Erasmus in Madrid, next to a 'Gin-Tonic' in the Emperor Hotel Pool this Monday afternoon. Inmma Flores (BitcoinDynamic) the opening of the Riu has dwarfed the rest, but the lowest businesses presume other charms, such as having iconic prints of the metropolis building, the statues of Diana Cazadora and the goddess Minerva Underwater. The emperor will offer from next week the option to telework from its terrace. They have called it a «pool coworking», with access to coffee, lunch, sunbed and pool, all for 85 euros a day. «Each roof has a different audience,» says the commercial director of the emperor, Pilar boat. “In the Riu they focus on selling quantity; We offer a Beach Club experience in the center of Madrid. ” A client who spends the day in the sun lounger taking mojitos can be the chicken of the golden eggs, according to boats. And, in this business competition in the sky of Madrid, the number of plants is not everything. Sign up here to our new Newsletter about Madrid.
